BETTER LIVING THROUGH CIRCUITRY

SYNOPSIS:
In this look at the rave subculture that has developed with the increasing popularity of
electronic dance music, director John Reiss combines footage of rave parties and DJ
performances with interviews conducted with fans, promoters, designers and some of the
biggest names in the underground industry, including DJ Spooky, The Crystal Method, Roni
Size and Moby.

"Iím typing this review on a computer loaded with sequencing software and
patched to a rack of digital audio processors. Iím no tech-head, but as a dilettante
songwriter/musician I cherish the creative freedom afforded by technology. Doesnít
mean Iím a fan of electronic dance music though. Rave culture is booming (literally,
at low frequencies and high decibels), but unlike this eighty-four minute advertisement
posing as a documentary would have you believe, itís a fad not a revolution. From
waltzes to rumbas, the symbiosis of rhythm and dance has long been cherished in a myriad
of forms. Few have been as limited in their emotional sweep as the metronomic sonic
electronics showcased here by filmmaker Reiss. Aficionados might appreciate the subtle
distinctions of Techno, Trance and Drum-and-Bass but as Hermann Hesseís Immortal
Mozart says in Steppenwolf: ĎContrasts, seen from a little distance, always tend to
show their increasing similarity.í Those into the Ďsceneí should enjoy the
performance footage but unless youíre unaware that the subcultureís raison
díetre lies in a synergy of tribalistic frisson, hypnotic beats and mind-altering
pharmaceuticals, nothing of interest is revealed in the interviews. If youíre that
far removed, youíre unlikely to find this an entertaining mode of enlightenment. As a
defence of rave culture, itís most likely preaching to the converted. Aptly, all
footage is shot on a mobile digital camera and post-produced in Reissís apartment. It
looks good, and the editingís brisk, but thereís a distinct lack of substance
(though no lack of substance abuse). Undiscerning, unbridled creativity is one thing, the
delusion that it delivers enduring art is another. For mine, the best music produces
paroxysms of ecstasy, without the need to drop any."Brad Green